Life's Little Rules
by Dr. Sky Kingdom
Summary: If there was something Roxas had learned the past twelve years was that life had a tendency to disregard anyone. Looks, wealth, and even the fact that some people had it hard enough as it was already doesn't matter to it. Sometimes, however, as he'd soon find out, it does have the decency to give you the occasional lucky break. AkuRoku
1. Prologue

**Hello, Dr. Sky Kingdom speaking. I've been meaning to write for quite a while now, and yet never had the courage to post anything. I decided to finally go for it today. So here I go, with my first fanfic. Constructive criticism is accepted with the biggest hug you've ever seen. I'm trying to become a better writer, after all. Maybe I'll have to edit some parts later. I guess we'll see. ^^**

Prologue

Everything appeared to be as it always was in Radiant Garden. Nice enough streets, plenty of people who paced up and down the sidewalk; some yelling over the phone, others pushing those who traversed in a calmer manner out of their bloody way. Very much like them, hundreds, of cars filled the congested streets. It was loud. It was active. It was Radian Garden, all right. Yes, for most people passing by it was a day like any other. Just them in their own little secluded mind bubble, with hardly any concerns out of ordinary as far as one could tell.

Out of all those people, all representing very different views and lives, there was a single guy standing who looked absolutely clueless as to what he was doing. Young, blond, dressed in an old back hoodie and ripped up jeans, a bag and guitar hanging from his shoulder, and unfortunately one of those poor souls who liked taking it easy. At least for the time being. He hadn't been outside for too long, and he wasn't about to ruin his mood by getting angry at some idiot who shoved him to the side. No, his hot headed mentality was not getting the better of him. Nope. Not today.

This was his first time seeing such a grand city. All his life he'd lived in the suburbs or small towns, namely Twilight and Destiny Island. Even when he'd moved to Hollow Bastion and he'd thought it was impressive in size, none of it compared to the huge skyscraper that literally touched the clouds, and the large reflective windows that mirrored the clouds and skies. It was a very unique view indeed.

It crossed his mind that he should probably get to his destination, which just so happened to be the subway. Luckily, that wasn't too far away anymore. He thanked the old man who'd pointed him in the right direction. Emphasis in right. There were several others who'd told him where to go, which only lead him around in circles for about an hour and a half. It'd taken a fair amount of will on his part not to turn around and punch someone in the face after ending up by that stupid 'Boyfriend Pillow' Advert. A little part of him died every time he saw it.

As he continued walking towards the entrance, he allowed his eyes to wonder about the streets. He remember a childhood friend of his brothers, Kairi, was born somewhere near Garden. No wonder her parents had decided to move away. Who the hell would have raised a child here? If a car didn't kill your kid by the time he'd turned seven, then you could call it a victory.

He sighed as he finally reached the stairs. Glancing around one more time before taking the next step, and told himself he'd come around at least one more time. Lastly, he stared at the sky, thought of Sora. If he was ever to come here, he would like it, he was sure. Who knows, maybe he'd even been there already. For some reason, thinking about that gave him a very strange feeling. Somewhere between nostalgia and sadness he figured, in spite of the tugging of his lips as he did so. Shaking his head, he advanced down.

Lucky for him, the signs around this place actually took him to the places he wanted. Back in Hollow, the signs were about as reliable and trustworthy as that one strange old man who smiled and licked his lips at him whenever they crossed paths. Which was entirely too often, in case you wanted to ask.

Now all he had to do what figure out how the hell he was going to find a way to Traverse Town. Having never done this before, he was pretty much winging the entire process. He'd thought of ordering a ticket for that purpose specifically. It didn't take too long for him to figure out that was not how this whole thing worked, if the face of the man who'd heard him talking to himself was any indication. Then again, he might have been looking at him because he was, again, muttering to himself something about idiots and stations, none of which was meant to be heard by anyone. He should take note of that. No longer alone, therefore, people will hear you 'inner' rambles. Seriously, the last thing he needed was for people to think he was insane on top of homeless. Neither of which he was, really.

Sure, he didn't have anywhere to sleep that day, or the next one, or the next one… Okay, he didn't have anything at the time. But, unlike some people going though similar situations, he did have a place to return to. He could go back to living in the 100 Acre Institution, with his practically adoptive mother Aerith and his friend Xion remained. He'd lived there since he was twelve, a year after his parents pulled a disappearing act on him and Sora. Unlike his much more charismatic twin, who got a new family within the next few months, he remained alone until the nurse of the shelter he lived in to become his legal guardian. As mentioned before, his brother was gone by then, so he'd felt a void in his chest when the last piece of his life was gone. Lucky for him, he was inscribed to go to a boarding school, which is where he met Xion. What a badass she'd become.

Both of them started out as shy, but slowly became more like they were today. Roxas an eighteen year old with the oh so rare wish to become a guitarist, and a temper that rivaled that of Hades himself. Xion, on the other hand, wished to become a psychiatrist, and had an uncanny ability to shame people to silence with words alone in spite of being one of the funniest people he'd ever met. He missed the both of them already, and he'd only been gone for a day and a half.

"If all you intend to do the next decade or so is stand around with a blank face, would you be kind enough to move aside for people who actually have business to attend to?"

"What?" he asked, slightly startled when he remembered that, oh right, he was standing in the way of everyone when he'd spaced out. Dammit. "Excuse me, Sir." He said hurriedly as he awkwardly flung himself out of the way, receiving a dirty glare from said man. _What a prick. _he grumbled once he was out of earshot for sure, bitterly leaning on the wall and sighing.

"Hey, kid." said an unfamiliar voice from his side. "You lost?"

Glancing sideways, a person with likely the most peculiar hair he'd seen since that one guy, Wakka. It was like a mullet and a mohawk had a baby and made a home on his head. Somehow, he thought it suited him.

"I wouldn't say lost as much as 'having no idea what I'm doing here' kind of thing." he admitted with complete honesty.

The sandy blond looked at him with a friendly smile. "First time here, huh?"

"Yup."

He leaned back next to Roxas taking something from his pocket, chewing gum, it turned out "Well, I'm happy to help if you want. The system is pretty hard to understand the first time around."

Roxas was reasonably weary of the man at first, being so kind and friendly, yet something told him this was a guy worth trusting. Still, stranger danger commercials existed for a reason. _Come on Roxas, you're not five anymore. _he told himself before replying with a simple "Sure."

"All right!" he pushed himself off the wall and turned excitedly to Roxas, wearing a grin that sort of reminded him of his brother's. "Follow me then!"

The guy was rushing away faster than he expected, so Roxas naturally hurried up and followed just as he was told. Lucky for him, he'd stopped once he still wasn't quite by his side, and it was easy to lose someone in a place as crammed as that one.

True to his word, this guy, whose name he learned was Demyx, guided him smoothly though the tedious and somehow nerve wrecking experience that was the subway station. He doubted he'd ever be able to do things as simply as his new acquaintance did.

"So, tell me, where is it that you're going?" he asked casually as they made their way to wherever it was that he was taking them.

"Traverse."

"Really?! Sweet!" he cheered, raising his arm in the air, waiting to receive a high five. It took him a few seconds to notice Roxas' questioning eyes. "Oh, right, I haven't told you. I'm going there too! We're going to be official subway buddies!" Now, Roxas actually returned the gesture.

"Great?" he asked jokingly, pushing Demyx a bit to the side.

"Dang right it's great! And I thought the ride home was going to be lame!" he laughed. The tickets were in their hands in a less than a minute thanks to Demyx, much to the sunny blonde's pleasure, "Lucky for you, I already know where to go from here."

Once again, going with Demyx was, at least thus far, a pretty good decision on his part. He appeared to know the place like the back of his own hand. It was safe to assume he came here pretty often. The walk the was short, plus the gates into their ride opened practically as soon as they arrived, and managed to find their way through the rivers of people that flowed in an out of it. Once again, the tasked proved to be far more difficult for the young apprentice, much to the older one's amusement. Demyx and Roxas squished themselves into the mass of people the narrow room now held. At least most people were relatively clean. To be honest, this was better than what he'd anticipated.

**Chapters will generally be quite a bit longer than this. That's the plan anyway. Follow or review if you deem this worthy. :) I'd sure as hell appreciate it.**


	2. Are You Satisfied?

**Okay, I swear these will get longer eventually. Thank you, lunar locket, for being my fist follow ever! :D I'll have to figure out how to mail a hug. Oh, and as I said last time, any form of constructive criticism is welcome! Thanks for reading!**

**Also, the disclaimer: Nope. I don't own anything but the story.**

Rule 1: Look At Your Life And Ask Yourself "Are You Satisfied?"

Making the decision to leave the institution was probably the hardest thing he'd ever done. It not only meant dropping out of school a year early, it was leaving the only source of comfort he'd found since he last saw his brother.

Looking back Roxas realized Aerith and Xion were the only reason he had to stay where he was. He had them and it was all that mattered for the longest time. They were the people who were there for him no matter what, just as he would for them. Still, as years passed he began noticing the lack of something he could not name. A strange sensation that only began to legitimately interfere with his daily life no more than eight months ago, when he went to visit his best friend's home during the summer vacations.

He'd always known his petite friend had a good relationship with her sister and parents, but it wasn't until he saw them together that it truly hit him just what he was missing. Of course he'd always been aware, but to witness such a wonderfully joyous family was like reopening a wound. It reminded him, as plenty of other things did at the time, of his own.

It was that foreign sense of longing that eventually lead him to go out. He analyzed where he was, and what it was all building up to, and in a 'moment of clarity' realized that it just wouldn't cut it for him. There were things he wanted to do and learn, all of which he couldn't if he remained sedentary.

Two months later, as he took in one last look at the entry to his former home, he was reminded of the promise he'd made with his brothers all those years ago. "One day," he'd told him "We're going to see all the world, right? To find our place and freedom!" Roxas knew Sora probably got the idea from one anime or another, but now, fourteen years later, it sounded as real as the cold wind that blew on his face.

The influx of wintry air that hit Roxas and Demyx as the door slid open were a nice change from the sweaty interior of the vehicle they'd just left. A nice feeling, that one. It hadn't taken longer than a half hour as far as he could tell since their departure, but there's only so much awkwardness a guy can take in a day. This wasn't because of Dem, much to his surprise; he was sure he'd get tired of his incessant chatter eventually, but he'd been wrong. He was just the kind of guy who liked to put a smile on someone's face. That's a welcome attitude no matter who you are, and what was even better was that he was actually good at it.

"Ah, home sweet home." he smiled, stretching his arms and popping his back.

Roxas, standing behind him took in the new scenery before him. It was like seeing Twilight's darker, edgier brother in a way. The two towns were similar in architecture, but very different in color and atmosphere. The district he'd spent most of his childhood in was warmly colored in reds, yellows and pastels, always having a quiet but friendly air about it. Traverse, on the other hand, was darker, flashier with neon signs, and a very active crowd. "So, where do you intend to take us now?"

It took the blonde a few seconds before realizing that, once again, his spacing out had nearly allowed his guide out of his sight, but lucky for him, he was tall enough to see him in the crowd. "Hey!" he called, slightly annoyed. "Quit leaving me behind."

Hearing him, he turned around to find him. "Sorry, I forget." he apologized, chuckling a bit and scratching the back of his neck. The way he acted was hilariously cartoony in his opinion. Maybe that's part of why he liked him in the first place.

Roxas rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but smile at his childish antics. "Anyway, as I was saying, where are we going now?" he paused realizing that maybe their acquaintance was over now that they were there, and then added "Or are we just going our separate ways now?"

"Actually, I know that you're probably pretty tired by now but if you're still up to do something, I'd like to invite you somewhere, now that we're friends and all."

He'd hoped he'd say that, if he was being completely honest, but at the same time he didn't want to crash his party or get together just because he didn't want to be left without a familiar face again. _Wow, I'm a total baby. _"I don't know…"

"Please! Think of it as a sort of a welcome party."

"Are you sure?" he asked, to which he received a practically instantaneous nod "Who's going?"

"No one you know, obviously. Just a few friends of mine." He then used the skill he'd developed over years of training: his infallible puppy eye technique, taught to him by the cutest of kittens and his little sister. It was super effective.

"Fine, I'll go." he laughed, adjusting his guitar case's strap over his shoulder "But if you keep using that face on me it's going to lose its effect."

"That's what they all say."

Turns out Demyx lived in an apartment complex only a few blocks away from the station, making the trip there a literal walk in the park. Roxas had to admit the town was very pretty to look at, especially the sky. He assumed the stars were to Traverse what sundown was to Twilight. He didn't say much on the way, preferring to absorbing this new place instead. Dem rambled on about on thing or another, hardly caring Roxas wasn't paying any attention to him, if he noticed that at all.

"Dem! Finally!" a voice yelled from within the house as the door was being unlocked, interrupting the near silence that had surrounded Roxas for the last hew minutes.

"We've been waiting for your lazy ass three hours now!" another voice, this time female, followed. She sounded far more irritated than the other one, from what he could tell. Not that he could really judge her for that. Waiting for someone for three hours isn't exactly a fun thing to do, and odds were his anger would get the best of him.

Demyx pushed the door aside with his shoulder, his hands being busy with putting his keys back in his pocket "Sorry guys, I got somewhat sidetracked."

"You? Sidetracked? What's this world coming to?" the pink haired one voiced sarcastically, covering his face with his hands and leaning back on the old couch he and the girl were sitting on. "Truly, the world is coming to and end!"

"Who is that?" she asked, pointing at the only person in the room she didn't know, raising a questioning brow at him. He found it that he didn't like being stared down by her, and promptly did so too. No Strife was ever beaten in a poker game for a reason, obviously excluding Sora. Being able to throw death glares was practically second nature to them, if his father was anything to go by.

"This is Roxas." Demyx said, completely oblivious to the small exchange going on in between them, keeping up his ridiculously carefree voice "I met him on my way back."

Okay, that was a weird crowd if he'd ever seen one. A guy with pink hair, another with slate greyish blue, a girl with hair antennae and the aforementioned mullet-mohawk hybrid. And that just covered the hair. Roxas found himself smiling at the strange new group he'd been introduced to. They were pretty cool looking, if you asked him.

Mentioning his name snapped him out of his glare, as he straightened up and gave an awkward "Hi." for which he intended to slap himself later.

"Okay, so these are Marluxia, Larxene, Zexion and… Axel's not here yet, huh." he sighted, face palming at his friend's tardiness. It had to take effort to beat Dem's lack of time managing, based on the others' commentaries.

"Actually, he was the first one to get here." Zexion said disinterestedly without taking his eyes off the book he was reading from his lap.

"Honey! I'm home!" sang a voice from behind them towards which Roxas instinctively spun around to face. His eyes widened a bit as he practically scanned him. Axel, he assumed. His hair was a vibrant red unlike any he'd ever seen, two tattoos, one below each eye, both shaped like upside down drops. His features were sharp, but his eyes even more so, enhanced even further by the emerald green of his irises.

"You sure have the gift of good timing, Axel."

"Why, there are so many things I'm good at, it's hard to keep up." he said dramatically "I went to buy cigarettes, seeing how you were waiting for hell to freeze over before showing up." he shook his head when his eyes landed on Roxas "Oh?" he turned his full attention to him, a smug, if jokingly so, grin taking over his face "I haven't met you before. I'm Axel, got it memorized?"

The blonde, ignored the fact that he was about a head shorter in height (the guy had to be at least 6 feet 5 tall) and in spite of having to look up at him when he did so, approached the redhead with an equally powerful smirk. "My name is Roxas Strife, _Axel_, and you better remember my name too."

**You know, originally I was going to post a story called Behind Blue Eyes, but I've read plenty of stories that cover the same thing: angsty Roxas is saved by Axel, and all that. Why not try to make something happy, where things are actually going right? There'll be bumps on the road of course, and it may be tough, but I thought I could make this about the lessons I've learned that have helped me so much these past few years. So here I am, trying to make a story out of it, plus my OTP. Yeys! :)**


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